AWM41 964 - [Nurses Narratives] Sister E G Dobson - Part 3

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were very trying - because most of them had been

innoculated with Anti tetanus Serum. & so could not 

be given their full dose of Antitoxin.
The injections being spaced. at ½ hrly intervals
& min. doses given at those times - One can
imagine the difficulty of keeping serum warm
& needles sterilised with every thing frozen
& a shortage of coal., Kerosene, & Methylated
spirits.
I was fortunate in having splendid orderlies
only Volunteers to The R.A.M.C. but what
splendid men. One man had been a
Commercial Traveler – another a barman -
yet what fine service they rendered
their mates in that Isolation Hospital
The barman - R.A.M.C orderly specialled
the C. S. Meningitis cases. & with heroic
devotion to duty he stuck to those highly
infectious cases. Those two worked through
all that Infect. work. with only the thought
for their comrades. My duty hours were from
 8. pm to 8. am. - my midnight supper &
morning tea I had in the duty tent - cold
or warmed up over a Beatrice Stove.
I was alone on duty there for 4 months. going across
to the General. Hosp part of the Hosp. to sleep &

for breakfast & dinner. It was very lonely when
on duty. & I was not very happy.  & I have
much gratitude to the two orderlies for
many kindnesses. They were indeed.
"nature's gentlemen!" Later I had to assist

me a very merrie Irish Sister & it

was much nicer then
We were near enough to Vimy Ridge to see mines

going up - to watch star shells. to see the flash

& illuminations crimson illuminations of the guns.
Sometimes the iron on the roof. would rattle so much it [[?]]

wake one up. We bou got our cases straight from the Field

Ambulances. To stand the cold- I put on all. 

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the warm. clothing I could muster. I was
very healthy. & did not have a chilblain
any time in France. The Matron of the Hosp.
was very charming, indeed -. I enjoyed
my stay while at her Hosp. The social life
was pleasant especially on Sundays.
& there the Hosp kept "open house" for the
officers. Many came from Arras to our
tea parties. The Tank Officers came muchly

- they were camped. near to us . & I saw the
first original tanks ever used. Certainly
they were well covered but I saw them or
parts of them. General Allenby was in
charge of 3^rd Army H.2. then & St. Pol. was
then H.2. So that much of interest occurred.
The King & the P. of Wales. visited while I was
there - the King of Montenego & Sir Douglas Haig 
also being among the distinguished visitors to
our Hosp. When the snow was there & frozen.
I joined parties to go tobogganing down
the hills - but I preferred to watch the others.
than indulge, myself. One night we heard
a great rumbling coming up the hill So the
orderly went scouting & came in to ask me
to go out too. I saw. sneaking along in the
darkness -drawn by a tractor engine a
huge Naval Gun - with Gun team Sitting
on its long snout. I was told it was one of
the Guns that helped the Canadians take
Vimy Ridge. Another morning. the orderly came

hastening in "Sister some of your boys are

passing"!  Out I hastened. it was the 25^th

Battery if I remembering rightly passing from Sth to

North.  This was the advance party.

Later I hung my flag from my window. &

I found it was no use staying inside there. So

went out to talk to them & I received many 

requests for that flag. but I didnt part with it 

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Jany. 7" I was granted leave - my first really.
leave. & went to London - it was too cold
to do anything else. but sit by a fire.
returned to Hosp & a short time later.
got movement orders. to return to No 1. A.G. Hosp
I had spent nearly 12 months with the British
& left there with sincere regret.

The journey to Rouen was indeed. trying

At that time bread.. meat. eggs. everything was 

frozen solid - icicles hung from the roofs.

to have a bath (?) I would take a bucket.

of icicles & put it on my stove overnight

& by morning I had a fine bucket of

boiling water for washing purposes &

[[8?]] hot bags & a warm room. It was under.

these climatic conditions I started for Rouen

At St. Pol. Station the R.T.O. when put seeing me

on the train gave me a small flask of

rum & I wondered then at "The Gift"

but later I rejoiced. I left 12 S.H. on Sunday.

4. pm. I reached Etaples at 2.a.m. on

Monday. The R.T.O. would not permit me to
proceed that night - he told me some men.

had been found frozen to death on the leave train

by which I travelled. I suppose they were

exhausted & wet through & could not resist

the further cold. So I was sent per bus -

in a blinding snow storm to 24^thGeneral.

to spend the rest of the night. I descended

into the snow + rug & hot water bag. &.

wandered round. for some time. till I saw.

a light & made for it - Tho' about a foot of
snow - & found I had come to no 7. Canadian

Hosp. The xxxxx orderly on duty in the kitchen looked

after me like a brother. filled my hot water bag.

& gave me an excellent supper of.

fried eggs. & fried potatoes & went to find the

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the night Sister of no 24. He found her. & when
she came. she was scandalised to find me.
enjoying a homely repast with the Canadian
Good Samaritan - . Later I was given a bed.
there - but I could see she did not approve
of stray Sisters who dined at 4. am. on.
fried eggs & potatoes - I spent the next night.
at Abbeville at the Hosp. there. & the following

night. at the N. Zealand Hosp. At Armiens

when that town was badly bombed. Over.
300 people were killed that night. & I was
aroused. by the night Sister & asked to go down
into the Cellar.  All the patients & Staff were.
under shelter but I was too cold & tired
to care what happened. & stayed where I
was. - in a bed. in the empty officers ward.

& watched the Sight. The Hosp. had been a

convent & the room I was in, had

apparently, been the Chapel. A life sized

figure of the Virgin filled the window. &

this figure was silhouetted again the 

bright moonlight. & flash of A.A. guns.

Shrapnel rattled on the roof like hail

The Hosp was situated quite close to the Railway

station & it was not possible to aim for the

Stn. & miss the Hosp.  Anyway. - the Hosp

was not touched. & I was so tired I went

to sleep in the midst of it & Sister woke me at

4. a.m. to continue my wanderings.

Oh! so cold - I had had for travelling
companions 2 British Officers - . & we

forgot the unpleasantness of our. journey

in each others company. - They were

very merry & helpful - & joined me at St Roch. 

the Hosp at 4.30 am & we went to St Roch.

reaching Rouen at. 7. pm. The night Sister

had filled my thermos with coffee. & we had

some sandwiches so picniced on that & biscuits

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I stayed with No 1. A.G.H till the present time
my days of adventure & absorbing interest
were over. I had had splendid experience
"up the line" & was content to do "Base Hosp"
work. - . For some months I was doing Medical
Nursing & then night duty in October 1917.
till the end of the year. in an acute Surgical
ward. I was on duty for the Cambrai push
in that ward. night duty - at one time
there were. 14 amputations in that section.
some of them "double amputations"
Convoys in - evacuations out – dressings &
ordinary ward. nursing kept one fully occupied
those days. One night we evacuated 23
acute surgical cases. ½ after they had gone
& we were just begining to finish the cleaning 
up of soiled linen. ring cushions, splints
dressing buckets. Carell's Tubes. & such like.
when. the cheering information of. " Convoy
in ½ hr " came to us. Myself & one orderly.
for 56 patients – The beds were not made
or were we tidied up. before in they came.
stretchers. & bearers. patients & snow. & then 
it was a race to get finished by 7. am.
when the night day people came on. 
In the Summer time I was on duty in the 
Sisters Mess & gardening was my pet pastime 
& I was proud of my garden at the Sisters
Quarters no. 1 A.G.H.  The Work being done - 
by Convalescent patients.  About this
time – we were being bombed or rather I
should say Rouen was being bombed. for
we were never touched. tho we could
hardly expect to escape. as we were
surrounded by camps.
Many nights we spent an hour or two in
trenches. clad in wierd raiment & tin steel hats 

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A camp stool or door mat was a treasure.
a cushion & an army blanket were my
best friends - I have a long piece of
shrapnel. that fell a inch or so from my
shoulder. which I recovered next morn.
in the sand of the trench  - It is a souvenir
One night at 10.30 the alarm went & we
obediently trotted into our trench. Stayed
there till. 12. m.n. Everything seemed over
& I went back to bed. just had succeeded
in dusting the sand from my toes &
getting warm & once more a jaunt
to the trenchs & this time we stayed till nearly
[[?2]] am. That time we stayed in bed &
we were not further disturbed. My worst
result was a bad cold & a pain in my
back. after one of these pleasant nights.
Sometimes Fritz was right over our heads
flying fairly low - & once he dropped a flare
that lit up everything with a greenish
glare. he was aiming for the two bridges.
One a wonderful. railway bridge. called
the Pont des Anglais. This bridge was
built for a great river in another land.
& was shipped to a distant port.
they found the then railway bridge.
insufficient to carry the increased
traffic. & so erected part of this bridge.
It had an incomplete span . - it was
erected by the R.Es we hired The
ground. it stood on. & therefore was
known as the Pont des Anglais. Twice
the enemy got very close to that bridge
on one occasion damaging the Opera House.
& the street. In Sep. I went on night duty
nursing Influenza. cases. - part of the time
I was on night duty when the Armistice 

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was signed - . coming to England. with the
second detachment of Sisters. At present I
am on duty in an acute Medical ward. but
leave it for night duty next week.
In all my Service with the Hospitals. I have
been. so happy. in the great patience &
cheerfulness shewn by the patients.
Tho' badly wounded they would always
try to make the best of it - & in the
many kindnesses shewn me by men 
from all over the world. Jocks. Canadian
Americans S. Africans. N.Z. English & 
Irish troops - & our own Australian heroes every where
there has been the great Spirit of.
kindness & helping from the "boys" of 
course at times & one gets got the reverse of this
but in such minor cases. Xx of
such infrequency one does well to
forget any such little unpleasantness.
The great Splendid Spirit of helping
their "Cobbers" helping "Sister" to get her
work done. helping the blinded - poor
suffering gas cases - The making the best
of the worst - has shone like a great white
light all through my 4 yrs of nursing
the men of the British armies
Also the many little courtesies & kindness
from the French people in the villages
A basket of apples for the "blesses" on
the train - a bunch of roses. to
Cheer up the table – these & many such.
little thoughtful acts make one almost
regret that the days. in the Army.
are almost over.
I carry many precious memories
with me. as I complete 4 yrs
Service with the A.A.N.S - A.I.F.
Elsie. Grace. Dobson.
— Sister —
 

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